I’m Using 2.9 But Still Hear Skipping

I Just Want My App To Work!

So you’ve installed our latest update, 2.9, and *still* hear audio skipping when you use Lightning Bug. Please check *each* of the following in the order they appear:– Are you using the latest version of Lightning Bug?
Launch Lightning Bug and pay attention to the app’s splash screen. The current version number is displayed to the bottom right of the app’s title. It should read “v2.9”. If not, go to the Android Market and install 2.9.– Is Lightning Bug Audio enabled?
Launch Lightning Bug and go to the Settings screen. You can get there by tapping the screen anywhere, then tapping the Clock icon (it should be second down in the first column). Lightning Bug Audio is the first settings option, make sure it is Checked.

– Does the audio always skip or only when Lightning Bug is in the background?
When Lightning Bug is in the foreground, that is you can actually see it, are you still hearing skips and gaps? Or do you only hear it when you send Lightning Bug to the background and do something else on your device like check email? In the case of the former, it seems your device is not supported by our app at this time. In the case of the latter, this is a known issue with our Lightning Bug Audio solution and actually relates to another issue in the Android OS. Bad news for you either way, but we ask that you wait until Android publishes its own fix for the setLooping audio bug at the root of this.

OK That’s Nice, But What’s Going On, This Should Be Simple!

First, I want you to know from me personally that we’ve done everything I think we reasonably can on this. We’ve been wrestling with this issue for more than 6 months now, that’s a short lifetime in app years. We contracted outside expertise, an option we’re very lucky to have because all of you have been so good to us. We even mounted a small, arguably successful, grassroots campaign to pressure Android into addressing the problem from their end.

Second, what exactly is the problem? Since its Gingerbread release Android has had a confirmed problem with playing compressed audio samples in continuous loops. Here’s a previous post on the subject.

Third, why do we keep saying its fixed when you continue to have issues? That’s a tricky one, but the main point is that our solution, we call it Lightning Bug Audio, requires a level of coding that is inherently difficult to 100% guarantee without testing it ourselves on all possible Android devices. But doing so is totally cost prohibitive at the moment. Currently we have 5 Android devices in our test bed: Motorola Droid X, Motorola Droid X2, HTC Nexus One, Samsung Nexus Galaxy, and a Motorola Xoom. Each release is tested on all devices. So if you’re still having skipping problems despite your device being represented in our test bed, please check and double check your settings.